Consumers' use of alternative information sources in inference generation: A replication study

This research replicates the Ford and Smith study (1987, JCR, 14, 363-371) which reported that the same-brand information source had greater influence than the other-brand information source for inference generation when subjects were instructed to make an inference about the missing attribute. The results of the replication did not support their findings. Our study, however, found that in most cases, both the other bl-and and the same brand are equally influential sources of information for the subject to draw an inference about the missing attribute. An interaction effect of interattribute correlations and information source on inference generation was also identified. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Inc.